Atheist Nexus2018-05-24T18:12:41ZRuth Anthony-Gardnerhttp://atheistnexus.org/profile/RuthAnthonyGardnerhttp://api.ning.com:80/files/RogKwYIq1EUf7IEsGKZnqcMTkSnUen19J-2GMmIPFLe-3qg*dJsMQ1dEf1b8uz*V-B0RIMVmYFrwo6s45Tw3qKa-LL1aTCcX/1227628091.jpeg?xgip=1%3A40%3A448%3A448%3B%3B&width=48&height=48&crop=1%3A1http://atheistnexus.org/group/atheistswholovescience/forum/topic/listForContributor?groupUrl=atheistswholovescience&user=0qxp7c3qz3s2k&feed=yes&xn_auth=noGoogle Duplex: AI That Passes the Turing Test?tag:atheistnexus.org,2018-05-11:2182797:Topic:27973652018-05-11T17:45:12.293ZRuth Anthony-Gardnerhttp://atheistnexus.org/profile/RuthAnthonyGardner
<p>Google has been polishing its phone assistant software to a fare-thee-well, to the point where its capacities are becoming both exciting and disturbing. Its new platform, "Google Duplex," can handle basic tasks, adapt to some variations on phone encounter scenarios, and (here comes the disturbing part) sounds very much like a human being! Duplex's capabilities are developed to the point that, in some but by no means all situations, it is claimed to be able to pass the Turing Test, that is…</p>
<p>Google has been polishing its phone assistant software to a fare-thee-well, to the point where its capacities are becoming both exciting and disturbing. Its new platform, "Google Duplex," can handle basic tasks, adapt to some variations on phone encounter scenarios, and (here comes the disturbing part) sounds very much like a human being! Duplex's capabilities are developed to the point that, in some but by no means all situations, it is claimed to be able to pass the Turing Test, that is to say: to demonstrate a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behavior equivalent to, or indistinguishable from, that of a human.<br/><br/>Think I'm kidding? Watch the following, then you tell me<br/><br/><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bd1mEm2Fy08?wmode=opaque" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" width="560" height="315"></iframe>
</p> Hill's Criteria Clarify Climate Change Argumentstag:atheistnexus.org,2018-04-05:2182797:Topic:27952562018-04-05T20:52:18.254ZRuth Anthony-Gardnerhttp://atheistnexus.org/profile/RuthAnthonyGardner
<p><a href="https://extranewsfeed.com/what-climate-skeptics-taught-me-about-global-warming-5c408dc51d32" rel="noopener" target="_blank">What climate skeptics taught me about global warming</a></p>
<p>Seth Miller helps us to grasp how climate science's claim that CO2 causes Climate Change makes sense. In the end it comes down to "good old human judgement". When faced with push back from the tobacco industry against medical evidence that smoking caused cancer, <span>Bradford Hill created nine…</span></p>
<p><a href="https://extranewsfeed.com/what-climate-skeptics-taught-me-about-global-warming-5c408dc51d32" target="_blank" rel="noopener">What climate skeptics taught me about global warming</a></p>
<p>Seth Miller helps us to grasp how climate science's claim that CO2 causes Climate Change makes sense. In the end it comes down to "good old human judgement". When faced with push back from the tobacco industry against medical evidence that smoking caused cancer, <span>Bradford Hill created nine criteria by which to evaluate causal claims in epidemiology. They are useful to clarify climate change discussions for non-scientists.</span></p>
<blockquote><span>When placed in Hill’s criteria, the strong points and weak points of the argument leap out. </span><p>If you believe alternatives to human-caused global warming, test them in this structure. See if the story holds.</p>
<p>The fact that we rely on stories to judge the legitimacy of an idea may strike some as lacking scientific rigor. So be it.</p>
<p><span>The evidence supporting man-made global warming creates the one of strongest science stories I have ever seen.</span></p>
</blockquote>
<p><a href="https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-319790ce2c5ddbe9eeed2e0816180189.webp" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img src="https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-319790ce2c5ddbe9eeed2e0816180189.webp?width=400" width="400" class="align-center"/></a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.quora.com/What-arguments-do-climate-change-skeptics-use-to-defend-their-position" target="_blank" rel="noopener">image source</a></p> Tech that reacts faster than humanstag:atheistnexus.org,2018-03-14:2182797:Topic:27937762018-03-14T04:35:50.363ZRuth Anthony-Gardnerhttp://atheistnexus.org/profile/RuthAnthonyGardner
<p>My son, Craig, is a design engineer for Panasonic working on a project that catches my imagination and I hope will be a benefit to drivers of all ages, classes, and occupations. </p>
<p>"<span>Panasonic is also building a connected vehicle demo center at its Peña Station hub. The center comes out of a partnership between Panasonic and the Colorado Dept. of Transportation to create the first U.S. connected transportation program in which real-time data would be shared across vehicles,…</span></p>
<p>My son, Craig, is a design engineer for Panasonic working on a project that catches my imagination and I hope will be a benefit to drivers of all ages, classes, and occupations. </p>
<p>"<span>Panasonic is also building a connected vehicle demo center at its Peña Station hub. The center comes out of a partnership between Panasonic and the Colorado Dept. of Transportation to create the first U.S. connected transportation program in which real-time data would be shared across vehicles, infrastructure, and people to improve safety and mobility. Panasonic is serving as the design architect of the program’s integrated software platform, and evaluating next-gen tech from across the globe that could support the program."</span></p>
<p>"Teams are now working to determine the best way to communicate information with drivers, and eventually directly to self-driving cars. Panasonic is leading the effort to deploy Dedicated Short-Range Communications, or DSRC, technology in Colorado. Think of it as an incredibly fast, highly secure Wi-Fi network for communication between vehicles and sensors installed along the road. Eventually, when a car several ahead of you suddenly brakes, your car will immediately brake with it to avoid a crash – DSRC-based technology can react faster than any human ever could, even if the incident is beyond the driver’s visual range. The first part of the effort is an initial technology footprint on Colorado’s I-70 Mountain Corridor."</p>
<p>~ <a href="https://na.panasonic.com/us/trends/consumer-road-self-driving-cars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mapping the ecosystem of Smart Transportation</a> </p>
<p></p> Reading Robots Beat Ustag:atheistnexus.org,2018-01-15:2182797:Topic:27890322018-01-15T18:16:07.219ZRuth Anthony-Gardnerhttp://atheistnexus.org/profile/RuthAnthonyGardner
<p><a href="http://www.newsweek.com/robots-can-now-read-better-humans-putting-millions-jobs-risk-781393" rel="noopener" target="_blank">ROBOTS CAN NOW READ BETTER THAN HUMANS, PUTTING MILLIONS OF JOBS AT RISK</a></p>
<p>It's been well over a year since <a href="https://nypost.com/2017/08/31/robots-learned-how-to-write-fake-yelp-reviews-like-a-human/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">AI-written yelp reviews</a> couldn't be distinguished from human reviews. Now AIs can read better than us…</p>
<p><a href="http://www.newsweek.com/robots-can-now-read-better-humans-putting-millions-jobs-risk-781393" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ROBOTS CAN NOW READ BETTER THAN HUMANS, PUTTING MILLIONS OF JOBS AT RISK</a></p>
<p>It's been well over a year since <a href="https://nypost.com/2017/08/31/robots-learned-how-to-write-fake-yelp-reviews-like-a-human/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AI-written yelp reviews</a> couldn't be distinguished from human reviews. Now AIs can read better than us too.</p>
<blockquote><p>The AI algorithm, developed by Chinese retail giant Alibaba, outscored humans in the Stanford Question Answering Dataset (SQuAD)—a global reading test consisting of more than 100,000 questions.</p>
<p>Using natural-language processing, the machine-learning model developed by Alibaba’s Institute of Data Science of Technologies beat rival humans with a score of 82.44 compared to 82.305,...</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Last year <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/01/bots-bots-bots/515043/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">52% of web traffic was bots</a>. How long till it's 99%?</p>
<p><a href="https://i0.wp.com/www.tycoonstory.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Sci-Fi-Bots-Write-the-Next-Great-Dystopian-Novel-tycoonstory.png?w=700" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img src="https://i0.wp.com/www.tycoonstory.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Sci-Fi-Bots-Write-the-Next-Great-Dystopian-Novel-tycoonstory.png?w=700&amp;width=450" width="450" class="align-center"/></a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.tycoonstory.com/research/will-sci-fi-bots-write-next-great-dystopian-novel/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">image source</a></p> CRISPR-Cas9 to treat diseasestag:atheistnexus.org,2017-12-08:2182797:Topic:27820652017-12-08T04:06:18.974ZRuth Anthony-Gardnerhttp://atheistnexus.org/profile/RuthAnthonyGardner
<p>A major revolution in disease treatment is breaking: Gene editing as a way to treat hereditary and other diseases by epigenetic modification rather than DNA change.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/12/171207141735.htm" rel="noopener" target="_blank">CRISPR-Cas9 technique targeting epigenetics reverses disease in mice</a></p>
<p><span>A modified CRISPR-Cas9 technique can treat disease, not by changing the genes themselves but by altering their activity. This avoids…</span></p>
<p>A major revolution in disease treatment is breaking: Gene editing as a way to treat hereditary and other diseases by epigenetic modification rather than DNA change.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/12/171207141735.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CRISPR-Cas9 technique targeting epigenetics reverses disease in mice</a></p>
<p><span>A modified CRISPR-Cas9 technique can treat disease, not by changing the genes themselves but by altering their activity. This avoids the possibility of introducing mutations. </span>Thus far researchers have restored normal kidney function in mice with acute kidney disease, improved the health of type 1 diabetic mice by getting their pancreas to make insulin, and improved muscle function and growth in a mouse model of muscular dystrophy. They hope for future treatments for neural disorders.</p>
<p>Their complex of virus-assisted enzymes ...</p>
<blockquote>… sits in the region of DNA of interest and promotes expression of a gene of interest. Similar techniques could be used to activate virtually any gene or genetic pathway without the risk of introducing potentially harmful mutations.<p>Their findings are the first to provide evidence that one can alter the phenotype of an animal with a epigenetic editing technology, preserving DNA integrity.</p>
</blockquote>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/0Yt9WF8QZ-vsN297aIB-KKST3cqPz5ztigd-beNt56fJ0kTbGhvh9rW3ZoPTNUXUSpuayZJFaHjDP4jhMkmj2VY4ui66FJBu/crisperepigenetics.jpg" target="_self"><img src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/0Yt9WF8QZ-vsN297aIB-KKST3cqPz5ztigd-beNt56fJ0kTbGhvh9rW3ZoPTNUXUSpuayZJFaHjDP4jhMkmj2VY4ui66FJBu/crisperepigenetics.jpg" width="450" class="align-center"/></a></p>
<p><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nm0817-900" target="_blank" rel="noopener">image source</a></p> Fake Medical Journalstag:atheistnexus.org,2017-12-04:2182797:Topic:27817222017-12-04T00:08:50.825ZRuth Anthony-Gardnerhttp://atheistnexus.org/profile/RuthAnthonyGardner
<p><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0738081X17301190" target="_blank">Predatory journals and dishonesty in science</a></p>
<p>A Dermatology Journal warns about magazines impersonating known journals to potential authors.</p>
<p><a href="https://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S0738081X16X00120-cov150h.gif" target="_blank"><img class="align-center" src="https://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S0738081X16X00120-cov150h.gif"></img></a></p>
<blockquote><p>Abstract</p>
<div id="as0005"><p id="sp0010">Predatory magazines are created by unreliable publishers who,…</p>
</div>
</blockquote>
<p><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0738081X17301190" target="_blank">Predatory journals and dishonesty in science</a></p>
<p>A Dermatology Journal warns about magazines impersonating known journals to potential authors.</p>
<p><a href="https://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S0738081X16X00120-cov150h.gif" target="_blank"><img src="https://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S0738081X16X00120-cov150h.gif" class="align-center"/></a></p>
<blockquote><p>Abstract</p>
<div id="as0005"><p id="sp0010">Predatory magazines are created by unreliable publishers who, after collecting a fee, publish the submitted paper in the Open Access (OA) formula without providing substantive control. For the purpose of “encouraging” authors to submit their work, they often impersonate existing periodicals by using a similar-sounding title, a similar webpage, and copied names of editors of the editorial board. They also offer credits close in name to the Impact Factor. The purpose of such activity is to deceive authors and to earn money in an unfair manner. This contribution presents mechanisms used by such journals and includes suggestions for protection from the duplicity and the subsequent disappointment of publishing, often for an exorbitant fee.</p>
</div>
</blockquote> First robot citizenshiptag:atheistnexus.org,2017-11-29:2182797:Topic:27814222017-11-29T04:50:13.319ZRuth Anthony-Gardnerhttp://atheistnexus.org/profile/RuthAnthonyGardner
<p>Why would Saudi Arabia grant citizenship to a female-like robot? It sounds like a stunt to me.</p>
<p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/E8Ox6H64yu8?wmode=opaque" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</p>
<p>Why would Saudi Arabia grant citizenship to a female-like robot? It sounds like a stunt to me.</p>
<p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/E8Ox6H64yu8?wmode=opaque" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</p> Flying Insects Three-Fourths Gonetag:atheistnexus.org,2017-10-18:2182797:Topic:27763642017-10-18T21:05:06.355ZRuth Anthony-Gardnerhttp://atheistnexus.org/profile/RuthAnthonyGardner
<p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/oct/18/warning-of-ecological-armageddon-after-dramatic-plunge-in-insect-numbers" target="_blank">Warning of 'ecological Armageddon' after dramatic plunge in insect numbers</a></p>
<blockquote><p style="text-align: center;"><span>Three-quarters of flying insects in nature reserves across Germany have vanished in 25 years, with serious implications for all life on Earth, scientists say…</span></p>
</blockquote>
<p></p>
<p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/oct/18/warning-of-ecological-armageddon-after-dramatic-plunge-in-insect-numbers" target="_blank">Warning of 'ecological Armageddon' after dramatic plunge in insect numbers</a></p>
<blockquote><p style="text-align: center;"><span>Three-quarters of flying insects in nature reserves across Germany have vanished in 25 years, with serious implications for all life on Earth, scientists say</span></p>
</blockquote>
<p><span><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/rc5al4mjyoSbZpaR8BoZg70161eiL0qsG7FjPvsRBVi3Kq0a3vAS-T*wmtoNcdaOKLhw7lPBB*NQGVSqTIoUXikmbhMVhFu4/insect3fourthsgone.jpg" target="_self"><img src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/rc5al4mjyoSbZpaR8BoZg70161eiL0qsG7FjPvsRBVi3Kq0a3vAS-T*wmtoNcdaOKLhw7lPBB*NQGVSqTIoUXikmbhMVhFu4/insect3fourthsgone.jpg?width=400" width="400" class="align-center"/></a></span></p>
<blockquote><p></p>
<p><span style="background: yellow;">The abundance of flying insects has plunged by three-quarters over the past 25 years, according to a new study that has shocked scientists.</span></p>
<p>Insects are an integral part of life on Earth as both pollinators and prey for other wildlife...</p>
<p>the newly revealed scale of the losses to all insects has prompted warnings that the world is “on course for ecological Armageddon”, with profound impacts on human society.</p>
<p>The new data was gathered in nature reserves across Germany but has implications for all landscapes dominated by agriculture, the researchers said.</p>
<p>The cause of the huge decline is as yet unclear, although the destruction of wild areas and widespread use of pesticides are the most likely factors and climate change may play a role. The scientists were able to rule out weather and changes to landscape in the reserves as causes, but data on pesticide levels has not been collected.</p>
<p>“The fact that the number of flying insects is decreasing at such a high rate in such a large area is an alarming discovery,” ...</p>
<p><span>“We appear to be making vast tracts of land inhospitable to most forms of life, and are currently on course for ecological Armageddon. <span style="background: yellow;">If we lose the insects then everything is going to collapse</span>.”</span><span> </span></p>
<p><span>The annual average fell by 76% over the 27 year period, but the fall was even higher – 82% – in summer, when insect numbers reach their peak.</span></p>
<p><span>The fact that the samples were taken in protected areas makes the findings even more worrying,... <span>most of them are well-managed nature reserves. Yet, this dramatic decline has occurred.”</span></span></p>
<p><span>“Flying insects have really important ecological functions, for which their numbers matter a lot. They pollinate flowers: flies, moths and butterflies are as important as bees for many flowering plants, including some crops. They provide food for many animals – birds, bats, some mammals, fish, reptiles and amphibians. Flies, beetles and wasps are also predators and decomposers, controlling pests and cleaning up the place generally.” </span>[emphasis mine]</p>
</blockquote>
<p></p> Scientists Closing in on the Dawn of Plate Tectonicstag:atheistnexus.org,2017-09-28:2182797:Topic:27697052017-09-28T00:19:10.068ZRuth Anthony-Gardnerhttp://atheistnexus.org/profile/RuthAnthonyGardner
<p><a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientists-closing-in-on-the-dawn-of-plate-tectonics1/?utm_source=newsletter&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=weekly-review&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_term=" target="_blank">Scientists Closing in on the Dawn of Plate Tectonics</a><br></br>"The massive slabs of Earth’s crust might have started their journey more than 3.5 billion years ago"</p>
<p>By Shannon Hall on September 22, 2017</p>
<p>My father never heard of plate tectonics until I…</p>
<p><a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientists-closing-in-on-the-dawn-of-plate-tectonics1/?utm_source=newsletter&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=weekly-review&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_term=" target="_blank">Scientists Closing in on the Dawn of Plate Tectonics</a><br/>"The massive slabs of Earth’s crust might have started their journey more than 3.5 billion years ago"</p>
<p>By Shannon Hall on September 22, 2017</p>
<p>My father never heard of plate tectonics until I was in college. He did not believe me to his dying day that such events occurred on the planet. </p>
<p>I found geology interesting in high school and so earned my college minor in geology. Looking at landforms, fitting them together as in a jigsaw intrigued me. Learning of the similarities of flora and fauna on the continents of Africa and S. America offered further evidence of those two giant continents once being connected, broke apart, and opened the gap that created the S. Atlantic ocean. </p>
<p>My interest in botany confirmed the conclusions drawn by scientists that these land masses were once of one piece. Evidence mounted until I could look at the globe and be fully comfortable with the idea that the planet had not always looked as it does now. </p>
<p>Using all this accumulation of facts from different resources did not change Dad's mind. Oh! I wonder how many other things I learned from my elders were not trustworthy? Evidence began to pile up, based on what I learned as a college student. New ideas, new arguments, new awareness, new options, and new opportunities opened up.</p>
<p>Oh! Yes! I am an atheist who loves science. </p> How to Identify That Light in the Skytag:atheistnexus.org,2017-09-24:2182797:Topic:27695502017-09-24T18:22:13.764ZRuth Anthony-Gardnerhttp://atheistnexus.org/profile/RuthAnthonyGardner
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/BA9F4ogPHE5qP-57*4qpksaCrfq-k3TBPdjuont6oRbCKG6sg6fY75FzmxQR0XHN*9ja18pKop1Nw-*AYG4OjRHlaSZmXVzv/Howtoidentifylightinsky.jpg" target="_self"><img src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/BA9F4ogPHE5qP-57*4qpksaCrfq-k3TBPdjuont6oRbCKG6sg6fY75FzmxQR0XHN*9ja18pKop1Nw-*AYG4OjRHlaSZmXVzv/Howtoidentifylightinsky.jpg?width=400" width="400" class="align-full"/></a></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/BA9F4ogPHE5qP-57*4qpksaCrfq-k3TBPdjuont6oRbCKG6sg6fY75FzmxQR0XHN*9ja18pKop1Nw-*AYG4OjRHlaSZmXVzv/Howtoidentifylightinsky.jpg" target="_self"><img src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/BA9F4ogPHE5qP-57*4qpksaCrfq-k3TBPdjuont6oRbCKG6sg6fY75FzmxQR0XHN*9ja18pKop1Nw-*AYG4OjRHlaSZmXVzv/Howtoidentifylightinsky.jpg?width=400" width="400" class="align-full"/></a></p>